Railroad-shunt



Patented Nov. 15, I1887.

RAILRAD SHUNT.

P. W. KALBPLBISCH..

.IIILIIFIIIII (No Model.)

PUNTED STATES PATENT OFFICE,a

FREDERICK W. KALBFLEISCH, OF BROOKLYN, NEW VYORK.

RAILROADfSHUNT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 373,294, dated November 15, 1887.

` Application filed October 27, 1884. Serial No. 146,624. (No model.)

.To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK W. KALB- FLEIscH, a' citizen of the United States, residing at Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in vRailroad-Shunts, of which the following is a specification.

My invention consists of a simple contrivance of permanently-xed rails and points, whereby the cars may be automatically sh u nted onto the branch or be run along the main track, as preferred, as hereinafter fully described, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in Which- Figure lis a plan view ofmy improved railroad-shunt, with dottedl lines showing the positions of the wheels of the car when running onto the branch. Fig. 2 is a cross-section of Fig. l on the line x x, with dotted lines showing the position of the wheels thereat when running onto the branch. Fig. 3 is a cross-section of Fig. l on the line y y, with dotted lines showing theposition of the wheels thereat when running onto the branch; and Fig. is an end view of the ends of the shunting-rails, which join with the main line and branch, with dotted lines showing the position of the wheels on the branch.

I make a pair of shunting-rails, a., of full dimensions from end to end, having an inside point-rail, b, extending, preferably, but not necessarily, about the distance between the axles of the car, and an inside ange, c, extending the whole length, with a groove, d, for the wheel-flanges, separating the point-rail b and the high part of the iiange c from the outside rail, a, suitably for the Iianges of the carwheels to pass between rail ct and point b when the wheels run along rail a.

At the point ends of the point-rails b, the iianges c are high enough Vto carry the wheeltreads onto the point-rails by the wheel-anges running on them, and each way therefrom said anges descend sufficiently for the wheeliianges to roll on and off without shocks; but the flange c may be of uniform height throughout the length, and the point may slope downward, if, preferrcd,to receive the wheels. The rails so made I connect with the main line e and branch f by joining the ends of rails a with one main line, e, and one branch rail, respectively, and joining the ends of point-rails b with one main-line rail e and one branch rail, f, respectively-that is to say, the main rails a of the shunt-rails are outside of the point-rails and connect with the main line and branch, respectively, and they are divergent toward the main line and branch, while the point-rails are inside of the main heads a ofthe shunt-rails, and they are convergent toward the main line and branch, and connect with said main line and branch, respectively, the gage of both the main line and branch being the normal measure at the junction of the shunt-rails therewith; but the distance between the rails a at Athis point is as much greater than the normal gage as the dangespace .cl and the head of point-rail Z) of one shunt-rail. From this point the shunt-rails a and the first rails, y, ofthe track in advance of the shunt-rails range in straight lines to the joints h, where the gage is also normal, which makes the gage wider at the junction of the shunt-rails with the rails g, so that if by any cause the car is made to incline to the rail of one side it will leave the rail of the other side, and run along iiange c onto point-rail b, and thus will take the main line or the branch according as the car is made to follow one rail or the other before arriving at the shunt-rails, and this, too, it is to be observed,without any lateral shift or slide of the wheels on the track, nothing more being required than to cause the car to incline to one side or the other while running onto and along or partly along rails g, which may be readily done by the team in the case of horse-cars.

It will be seen that with this improved sh untl no movable points or other movable parts are required to shunt the cars or not, the same as movable point-switches do; and it will also be seen that it dispenses with the use of inside treads of the car -wheels and the elevatingrails sometimes used for running upl and thrusting the wheels laterally for automatic shunting.

I am aware that shunts or .points,77 as they are technically called, arein use on streetraiiways that somewhat resemble mine; but they differ in this essential particular, that whereas in mine the gageof the track is gradually increased for some distance before reach- IOO ing them, the gage of those in use is maintained upto or near the point of shunting, making a heavy sliding or lateral motion necessary to transfer a ear from one track to an- 5 other, which is entirely obviated in mine.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The combination, with shnnt-rails a, having inside fixed pointrail7 b, and flange c, and 1o joining one main-line rail, e, and one branch rail, f, ofrails g, in advance of the shunt-rails, which, together with the shunt-rails a, diverge from the point hin advance ofthe point-rails and to the junction with the main line and branch, and thereby widen the gage ofthe rails 15 g to the point-rails, enabling the cars to automatically run on the main line or branch, according as the cars are inclined to run along one rail or the other,substantially as described.

In Witness whereof I have hereunto signed zo my name in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

FREDERICK W. KALBFLEISCII.

Vit-nesses:

W. J. MORGAN, S. H. MORGAN. 

